Critique Services

Critique Services Prices

All critiques include overall notes, line edits, and full access to consultation and brainstorming for the length of the contract.

FULL manuscript critiques available on a limited basis: (price varies by length)

Twitter contest pitch (2 passes): $7.50

Twitter contest pitch (3 passes): $10

Query (2 passes): $25

Query (3 passes): $35

First five (2 passes): $50

First five (3 passes): $60

First Chapter – up to 15 pages (2 passes): $75

First Chapter – up to 15 pages (3 passes): $85

First 3 Chapters – up to 50 pages (2 passes): $130

First 3 Chapters – up to 50 pages (3 passes): $155

I can be reached either through my Contact Rae page or at BleedingInkInc@gmail.com. Please include your category/genre, which service you would like to purchase, and how many passes you would like.

If you are unsure what service is best for you or would like to request a custom package, I am open to consultation.

Some Important Things You Should Know

To avoid a conflict of interest, should you choose to query DMLA (Donald Maass Literary Agency), because I read slush for them, I will have our other slush reader evaluate your query. You are certainly free to query the agency, but know that if you are one of my clients, I will not be the one reading your query or pages.

I will not write your pitch, query, or book for you. Period. I may suggest a different construction of a sentence, paragraph, etc. but I will not be doing the actual writing for you.

I will give you a timeline for completion based on my current workload. My usual turnaround time is 2-6 days if my workload is light and 7-10 days if my workload is heavy. If an emergency comes up that will alter that timeline, I will let you know as quickly as possible. (I do have occasional health problems that may crop up.)

If you are dissatisfied with your edit notes or critique, please let me know. I am fairly flexible, and I very much prefer working out problems together as opposed to letting them fester silently.

If you want someone to simply gush over your work (yes, I was once this writer), I am not the right editor for you. I will not be brutal or belittle you, but neither will I coddle you. Above all, I will never lie to you or tell you simply what you want to hear.

I have read queries for all genres in my line of work, but I am not the right person to critique picture books, non-fiction books (this includes memoirs), women’s fiction, and literary fiction. My personal expertise is in all YA genres and adult SFF. There are many wonderful people who offer editorial services (literary agent Eric Smith has an EXCELLENT list here) and critique materials in genres I am not an expert in, so if I am not the right editor for you, I will certainly take no offense.

If you purchase a 3-pass service, but end up only needing two passes, I will charge you at the 2-pass rate. I will never make you pay for more than you need.

I’m sorry, but I cannot refer you to my agents or to the agents at DMLA. Unless I have read an entire book and have absolute faith in the author, I simply cannot put my reputation on the line based on a query or first five alone. Definitely feel free to query the fine people of DMLA if your project fits their interests! They are all legitimately amazing, let’s be real, but please know I cannot give you a referral.

As of right now, I only accept payment via PayPal. If there is a high demand for another platform, I will consider adding that one. Half of the payment is due when you submit your materials, and the other half is due upon completion of your last pass. You will receive an invoice detailing which service(s) you purchased and at what rate.

If you cannot afford an edit or are not ready for one, feel free to check out my articles and craft threads or follow me on Twitter, where I frequently post querying and writing advice.

These editorial services will not guarantee you an agent or a book deal. Doing your research and querying the right agents for your project is your responsibility. If you query agents who do not rep your genre or care for your premise, there is nothing I can do about that. And while a good query and first five can certainly get you requests, polishing the entire manuscript is even more important. (Sadly, I’ve seen many queries that were fantastic, but the actual writing fell short.) Take the time to find good critique partners and beta readers to help you with this. Read craft blogs and threads. There are many resources out there.

There are just no guarantees in publishing. It would be very, very nice if there were, but sadly, there are not.